The ongoing Probe into issues of land fraud has issued criminal summons for the Minister of Lands, Betty Amongi to appear before the Commission to answer allegations of land grabbing.
Amongi is accused of using her influence as the Minister of Lands to secure a parallel title to land in Kololo, Kampala valued at Shs 5 billion, belonging to an Indian family. The Minister was initially summoned to appear before the Justice Catherine Bamugemereire Commission of Inquiry on April 20 to answer to the allegations, but she snubbed the Commission.
Six days later, on the date the Minister had committed herself to make an appearance, she also failed to show up.
Now, the Commission through its Acting Secretary, Dr Douglas K. Singiza has ordered Betty Amongi to turn up on May 7 without fail.
“Whereas you were earlier summoned to appear before the Commission of Inquiry appointed by the President…… you failed to attend without a reasonable explanation,” the May 3 summons by the Commission of Inquiry to the Minister read in part.
“You are hereby commanded by the Commission to appear before it on the 7th day of May at 9am to record your statement and thereafter give testimony at 12 noon at the Land Commission offices”.
Failure to heed to the criminal summons constitutes an offence according to the Commission of Inquiry Act.
The Minister will give her side of the story regarding the disputed Plot 29 along Acacia Avenue in Kampala whose ownership is also claimed by a one Tashak Partel. Partel accuses Amongi of illegally acquiring a title to the said plot of land as well as intimidating their family.
Amongi will as as well answer queries relating to her role as Minister in handling cases of land fraud in Uganda and what she knows about M/S Amobet Investments Limited, a company in which she is said to have majority shares.
On Thursday, seven people from an Indian family led by a one Tashak Partel testified before the Commission of Inquiry that they received a letter from Amobet Investments Ltd last year in December asking them to vacate the Kololo property. The letter according to Partel stated that the property they had been occupying belonged to government.
But Partel told the Commission that the property was bequeathed to them by their deceased parents. He said that at the time of the expulsion of Asians, his grand parents were the registered proprietors of the property which was later repossessed by his mother, Mandakini Manubai Partel in 1995.
In his submissions to the Commission, Partel said that in February, Minister Amongi wrote to his lawyers summoning him to appear at the Ministry of Land headquarters to respond to allegations that he had forged documents including a land title of the Kololo property.